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Published: March 5th 2012
Saturday 03 March 22.00
I walk across the road to the railway station and see my train on the electronic board platform 2, over the footbridge we go no madness of Old Delhi here a small station. The train is on the platform a porter shows me the carriage in return for a photo. The ticket inspector stamps my ticket and into the carriage we go. I knew 1st class was too good to be true. 1St Class maybe but in 1985 the carriage is filthy with an inch of sandy dust everywhere. I check the other berths all as bad if not more than the one I have selected. Not many people here A Chinese girl and some Indians. I go back to my berth!!!!! At least the very noisy ac is working there as 4 fans in the ceiling, I dare not give then a try don’t want to start a twister , I go back to the carriage door and look at the reservation chart YES it’s my train not the 3.10 to Yuma.
I return to the berth a man comes in with wet rag on a stick and proceeds to wipe everywhere but goes
around my ruckie. All he manages to do is make very nice Walnut whip swirls in the dust and moves on.
The ticket inspector ushers the Chinese looking girl into the berth and she shouts at him in Hindi I am surprised. You speck Hindi I say - I am Indian she replies. She tell that everyone is complaining about the carraige but its a waste of time.
We pull out of the station at 22.40 we should arrive Jaisalmer at 04.30.
As we settle we exchange names. Her name is Mai and she is a Mizo from the state of Mizoram which is over by the Bangla Desh/Burma border that’s when she looks Chinese at least to me.
Her name is Mai and she works in a hotel in Delhi and is travelling for 5 days on her days off. Why don’t you go home I say (Just another silly question to add to the others while in India) because it takes 4.5 days to get from Delhi to Mizoram - Wow – with the last 230 k on a bus that takes 9 hours.
The journey is purgatory the train is noisy and
rocks back and forth like a mandarin jelly (that’s for you mike). We are given no bedding and see no one no pantry car here. We talk for a good while and then lock the berth door and turn out the light.
It’s not possible to sleep so I lay in the darkness and watch the desert night sky through the dusty window.
Mai cannot sleep either and we talk some more and swop sweets and peanuts. The night passes slowly but we arrive in Jaisalmer on time.
Mai has a pickup booked and mine has not turned up so I share a rick with Mai. She gets out at her guesthouse we say goodbye and I move on to the Desert Moon which is in total darkness as I arrive, but a light comes on when the rick driver bangs on the door.
In and straight to bed as dirty as I am, sleep beckons.
Paul
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Maddy
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Namaste Paul !!!! I am really enjoying reading your adventure !!! Everyday I check my emails and yours is the first one I read !!! Love ya xxx Yo dad a week gone already , how time flies !!! Keep up the good work on the blog, u will be writing a book when u get back haha...... Take care !!!! See ya soon xx